Four Months in a Sneak-Box

The author had previously made a similar solo voyage in a canoe, but for this trip he sought a heavier boat with more storage capacity that could be either sailed or rowed. He selected a Barnegat sneak-box, built in New Jersey mainly for duck hunters. Twelve feet long and four feet wide, it weighed about 200 lbs. See the illustration at page 14. The voyage was begun at Pittsburgh, from where he drifted down the Ohio River to the Mississippi, then continued south to the Gulf of Mexico. This book seems similar in style to many modern travel books, combining a detailed description of his progress and discomforts, notes on the natural beauty of the river, accounts of incidents and places along the way, and some occasional local history.

First sentence: THE READER who patiently followed the author in his long "VOYAGE OF THE PAPER CANOE," from the high latitude of the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the warmer regions of the Gulf of Mexico, may desire to know the reasons which impelled the canoeist to exchange his light, graceful, and swift paper craft for the comical-looking but more commodious and comfortable Barnegat sneak-box, or duck-boat.

Year

1879

Language

English

Publisher

Stackpole Books

Editions

13

Pages

292

ISBN

9781589762244

Data source: Wikidata